Blanet, a Mysterious Planet Around a Black Hole

Blanet, a Mysterious Planet Around a Black Hole

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Black holes are one of the most mysterious phenomena in the universe. Their extremely strong gravity is capable of pulling everything, even light, into them.

However, what if a planet managed to survive in orbit around a black hole? A team of scientists is studying how new exoplanets can form around black holes.

Today, planets that orbit black holes are called blanets. This name was created by a team of astronomers led by Keiichi Wada from Kagoshima University, Japan.

Quoted from Science Alert on Friday (06/12/2024), this team of scientists is also looking to find out how blanets can form from dust grains that swirl around black holes. Dust and gas that swirl around a black hole can gradually collect to form a blanet.

In the process of planet formation, the gas and dust clouds that form the disk will initially stick together due to electrostatic forces. Over time, these dust clouds and gases will clump together and collide with each other until they accumulate into large clumps.

If nothing hinders the formation process, a planet can form completely after several million years. Meanwhile, clouds of gas and dust in the black hole's excretory disk due to gravitational collapse are thought to be capable of forming blanets.

The research team found that at sufficient distances from black holes, the formation of blanets may be more efficient than the formation of planets around stars. This is because the orbital speed of the accretion disk is fast enough to keep objects in the surrounding area from leaving orbit and falling into the black hole.

As long as it is far enough away not to be swallowed up by the black hole's gravitational pull. Blanet must be beyond the event horizon to avoid extreme gravity that could destroy it.

The orbital distance must also be far enough so that the planet does not experience interference from intense radiation. Unlike planets orbiting stars, planets orbiting black holes do not get their energy from light.

Instead, the energy can come from the accretion of matter around the black hole or the emission of relativistic radiation from the accretion disk. The environment around a black hole is extreme.

X and gamma radiation from the accretion disk can affect a planet's atmosphere and life on its surface. However, if the planet is far enough away, this radiation may be minimized.

Several studies have tried to model the existence of planets around black holes. One of the most interesting simulations is a "dark planet" scenario that depicts planets that do not depend on starlight for life.

Hypothetical life on this planet might depend on internal energy sources such as geothermal heat or radiation from a black hole's accretion disk.